Imagism, Minimalism, Objectivism, Haiku

This week, we read three poems by 18th century Japanese poet and painter, Yosa Buson: "Coolness," "Early Summer Rain," and "Sparrow Singing." Then we looked at William Carlos Williams' classic minimalist poem, "The Red Wheelbarrow." Students were asked what these four poems had in common, and in what ways were they different? Some were familiar with haiku, but instead of sticking with the traditional haiku syllabic formula, students were encouraged to write poems that created a simple, but evocative image in the mind of the reader, in three lines with no more than five words per line.

There were many terrific responses to this idea -- here's a selection.

Ms. Fialkowski, 5th Grade

The Acorn
Angel H.

The acorn falls
on a leaf then
grows.

Dark in Sky
Vanessa P.

So dark in sky
and you could see dark
anywhere with your eyes.

The Sun
Jonathan R.

The highlight of the sun
the trees of nature glowing
goodbye sun, goodbye

Waterfall
Marbella R.

Waterfall –
the water falling
the roar of water

Life
Steven S.

Life is
some thing
special

Baby Birds
Samantha T.

Beautiful baby birds
staring at their mom
wondering why she won't eat

Ms. Michel, 5th Grade

Forest
Daniel A.

the sound of one
bird that sounds more beautiful
than a chorus of millions

Branches
Alondra B.

Branches –
sway around
in the dark night

Rain
Gerardo C.

Rain
sometimes hard in the summer
you wonder is it gone

The Red Book
Samuel G.

The red book laying down
as the rain pours over
it the words vanish

Shells
Jessica M.

beach is a place
where shells are
next to the shore.

Rainbow
Luis O.

A big glowing rainbow outside,
two of them from
rain.

Fall
Karen R.

Fall –
is turning to
orange and yellow, and brown

The Cheetah
Yulissa R.

The cheetah runs
in the forest for its
freedom.

Orange Juice
Jeremy S.

The orange juice –
the orange juice is
sitting on the table empty

The Lonely Baseball
Javier S.

the lonely baseball
sits on the lonely
ground

Waves
Alvaro S.

crashing down
like a plate
falling and breaking.

Ms. Hughesdon, 5th Grade

The Wolf
Salena C.

The Wolf –
dragging its prey
its pup playing around.

Nature
Anheli D.

The squirrels running from animals.
The crickets making sounds.
The smoke of the chimney.

Lake Michigan
David F.

Lake Michigan
boats pass by
shadows reflect.

The Dog
Belen F.

The dog is
barking at the
stranger the dog doesn't stop.

Tree
Jessica Z.

That growth of the tree
is from small
to leaves.

Ms. Montoya, 5th Grade

Fly
Daisy A.

Two big wings,
things inside,
soaring through the clouds.

Night
Janet B.

Night is time to
close your eyes
and go to sleep

Wind
Ramiro G.

Wind it blows to your
skin as you hear it
whisper in your ear.

Outside
Omar G.

Outside bird humming
for hunger at the
middle of daylight

Tigers
Anibal M.

Tigers are
dangerous
tigers eat people

Waterfall
Ivan M.

waterfall –
falling water but,
never fills up

La Rosa
Monica M.

En el campo hay una
rosa, roja, con su tallo
verde, que espera verde.

Morning
Jose P.

Waking early –
a new day,
after tired sleep.

Shark Attack
Eric P.

There's a hungry shark.
He's in the distance.
All the fish swim away.

Rain
Jesus P.

you see rain every-
where around the streets
you see your reflection

Birds
Diana R.

Birds chirping while flying, almost
look like dancing, feeding those
little beaks up that tree

Ms. Graefen, 5th Grade

The Lake
Magdalena F.

The lake
flowers facing the lake,
five of them.

The School
Cesar G.

The school is full in
the morning and empty and
spooky at night.

Snow
Eliliana L.

Snow is cold
soft and melts
it's like ice cream

A Pig
Rocio M.

A pig on a
tree, how weird
don't you think?

Birds
Julian V.

When I'm walking sometimes
I hear spring
birds in the sky

Mr. Heredia, 5th Grade

wet dogs
Deisy C.

wet dogs
that smell
horrible.

Forest
Daryl C.

A hoot and the blowing
wind. Animals are awake, and
asleep, coming in, and out.

Basketball
Keith D.

Basketball –
the sound of it
makes an echo

Rain
Fernando P.

The rain is dropping,
drip by drop down the
streets.

The Country Flag
Leslie S.

Red, white, blue
waves
on the pole

Winter
Adela S.

it's cold outside
drink hot cocoa
time to build a snowman.

Haikusplosion II

This haiku assignment turned out to be a meaty toothsome project that stretched over a couple of weeks. Deceptively simple in their bite-sized length and crystalline subject matter, haiku sometimes look easier than they are. Below are some new ones, and some that were made over and edited this week, so you can see how they have progressed.


###


Ms. Vilchis, Rm. 202, 3rd grade


Haiku
Vanessa M.

They sky is blue
The bird is singing
The bus is driving


Haiku
Sergio H.

I see the sky
green and pink
when I was playing


Haiku
Jenny N.

In this moment my
sister Kayla is making
trouble all over.


Haiku
Miguel C.

I see rocks crushing each
other in the blue sea of far from here
to the other side.


###


Ms. Vazzana, Rm. 104, 3rd grade


Haiku
Luis M.

The trees are down on the ground.
I hear the birds.
The family is waking up.


Haiku
Karina G.

Outside there are
dogs cats and trees houses
a lot of leaves


Haiku
Angelica V.

The leaves are falling and I like
that they fall to my family too.
My family is so happy that I got big
and my sisters grew a lot.


Hauku
Jhoan B.

in the world the earth
moves but you cannot feel it because
it is moving too slowly


###


Ms. Hamdan, Rm. B15, 3rd grade


Haiku
Ashley A.

My mom is raking
the leaves so we can jump in them.
Me, her, and all them.


Haiku
Jennifer R.

I am thinking about
my friend jumping in the leaves
that are green that are crunching
in fall.


Haiku
Michelle B.

The sky is blue now
The clouds are coming out now
It’s going to rain


Haiku
Jordy D.

Now mom is talking
on the phone to check all the things
are going good.

In this moment...

Okay, in most cases I haven't included the prewriting/freewriting we did in preparation for the haiku writing, but I wanted to post these examples, both to show what we draw the haiku poems from, and also because these three just had some really super-tough imagery that I wanted to make sure to highlight.


###


Ms. Vazzana, Rm. 104, 3rd grade


In this moment (freewrite)
Jhoan B.

In this moment I have chapped hands and the season is changing weather and it is cold. The leaves are changing color and the trees are throwing the leaves and all the trees are losing leaves. And we have to wear coats jackets and the leaves are not growing. People do not go out and play. In this moment people are talking in their houses and I can’t hear it. In the world the earth moves but you cannot feel it because it is moving too slowly. You cannot see the stars because they are too far far far far far away. The president is living in a big house and you’re not. And leaves are yellow and it is raining a lot and leaves are not growing. And it is cold. People do not go out again because it is cold and my teacher is wearing a red shirt and my teacher is writing in a paper and I am writing a lot and my best friend is Miguel. And my teacher is sitting with me. And I am at school working in my classroom. 104 3rd grade November 14, 2007. Jhoan B. is making this story and Omar is funny and I am too.


In this moment (freewrite)…
Kevin C.

In this moment leaves are falling and they’re changing clothes and they’re falling like a parachute each day and they’re living trees bold and cold wind is flying in air. Pencil writing in paper and paper smashing in the ground and people talking heart beating. In this moment I see the color green and the color white and the color purple and the color orange.


Things outsides
Hazael G.

In this moment the trees are dying.

In this moment all the flowers are crying.

The cars are cool.

In this moment the storms are giving thunder.

In this moment the firefighters’ alarm is ringing.

Everyone has purple folders

Haikusplosion

Last week, we read a wide selection of haiku poetry (by Basho, Hideno, Richard Wright, Etheridge Knight, Jorge Luis Borges, and others), discussed the form, and did some extensive prewriting and freewriting to capture moments and generate some raw material. This week, we were ready to write our own! I've included some that adhered particularly well to the traditional haiku structure, but just as much I've included some poems that captured the spirit of a haiku. More to come from the other classes next week!


###


Ms. Vilchis, Rm. 202, 3rd grade


Haiku
Miguel C.

My mom is cooking foods.
I see blue sky.
I hear rocks crushing each other.


Haiku
Daniel R.

I am hearing steps
from Mrs. Vilchis and Mrs. J
walking through the stars


Haiku
Nicole O.

In this moment the leaves are
blowing away. I heard the noise
of an El.


Haiku
Carlos

I hear the music
of the head like a twisted heart
in a practice band.


###


Ms. Hamdan, Rm. B15, 3rd grade


Haiku
Giselle H.

I’m thinking to stop
thinking. Leaves changing colors.
I know what to say.


Haiku
Ashley A.

I am cleaning my room
and I do not want nobody to go
inside of my room.


Haiku
Melissa V.

I am winter and
shivering and
tivery and the
snow is white.


Haiku
Nestor H.

My baby brother
Camilo is crying for
milk in a bottle.